On Sept. 8, Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams played one of the most controversial women’s final matches, which ended with Osaka taking the win 6-4. However, the win was met with some resistance.
Due to Williams’ alleged cheating and hostility toward chair umpire Carlos Ramos, she was met with a lost point and, eventually, game. Williams was warranted in her frustration. Of course, she was upset about being penalized. Even though this was her fault, it is understandable she would be frustrated. However, when she screamed and brought up women’s rights, she took things too far. She ultimately took away the glorious moment of Osaka’s first Grand Slam and made the U.S. Open about herself, despite her losing.
This victory was Osaka’s first Grand Slam, and she is the first Japanese woman to win this title. However, the booing of the crowd dimmed this astounding accomplishment. Williams continued to overshadow Osaka when she refused to shake Carlos Ramos’ hand, and instead commented on the apology she wanted. She didn’t stop her rant with the end of the match.
In her post-game interview, Williams continued her gender argument with, “I’m here fighting for women’s rights and for women’s equality and for all kinds of stuff.”
While writing this, I began to laugh because of how absurd Williams acted. First of all, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post, Patrick Mouratoglou admitted he was coaching, something Williams still denies. Every changeover, she had something to say about never cheating and getting coached. 
 
For the third violation, Williams even admits she was wrong, yet continues to argue. She has played tennis for a long time, and she knows the rules very well. Verbal abuse is explicitly not allowed. She never gave Ramos a break. Yes, he is notoriously strict and he follows the rulebook to a tee, but this is what he is supposed to do: follow the rules. If she did not want to get penalized, she probably should not have incessantly defied the rules which she so angrily argued were not broken.
When asked why she would not come to terms with her loss, Williams offered she was fighting for women’s rights. However, I believe she did the opposite. She was furious she was not winning, so she took the opportunity to use her gender and new motherhood as a ploy to get her point and game back while simultaneously tainting Osaka’s first win.
Christopher Clarey, a sports writer for The New York Times, researched William’s claim, which argued women are penalized more than men. He found men are actually punished much more, with 646 racket abuse fines, compared to women’s 99. Men have 62 verbal abuse punishments, with 16 for women. 
Additionally, even though fines toward women are few compared to their male counterparts, The Associated Press for Sports Illustrated reports Williams was charged a whopping $17,000 for her conduct in the U.S. Open final. 
Not only did she make something out of nothing, she also used the agitated crowd to her advantage. Every time she would get testy with the chair umpire, the onlookers reacted with boos and yelling. The crowd was still agitated when Osaka accepted her trophy, booing the poor young athlete to tears over their dissatisfaction with Williams’ loss.
She made this match about her and her penalties, instead of celebrating the rise of a new Grand Slam star. She used the crowd enamored with her and women’s rights to garner a reaction. Losing is not fun, but neither is ruining a monumental win for a rising athlete.